The second book in a trilogy is always hit or miss. They can be either really good, or quite bad and often toe the line between “interesting” and “boring”. More often than not, the second book in a trilogy is used to get all the history and information out of the way, thus taking away most of the excitement from the book.

The Glass Magician was not boring whatsoever, but rather very interesting.
After the events that took place in The Paper Magician, Ceony is back to square one: studying and being nothing more than Magician Thane’s clever apprentice, but she has realised she wants more. That “more” just happens to be her teacher, someone she cannot have a relationship with.

Where there was only a hint of romance in the first book, there is a lot of it in the second. It’s all Ceony thinks about – Thane’s hair, Thane’s laugh, the way he looks, the way he acts, how good they’d be together.

She loved him.
She loved his genuineness, his honesty, his cleverness, his humour and eccentricity. She loved the way his hands moved when he Folded, and the way he pursed his lips when concentrating.

Usually, these sort of rambling thoughts can be annoying, mostly because they take away from the story and the plot itself, but in The Glass Magician, even though Ceony is head over heels in love, the story moves along smoothly.Three months after the rightful returning of Thane’s heart, Ceony is hell-bent on making her vision from the fortuity box come to fruition (that true love is just round the corner)… but is, instead, hunted by a magician who wants to know her secret: how did she freeze the evil Lira? And why was she able to do so?

The magician is willing to do anything to get his answers, even if it means killing all the people Ceony loves.

Suddenly, Thane and Ceony are on the run, protected by the council, and trying to find all the answers to the many questions that keep popping up. There are obstacles, tests and, ultimately, a price to pay. What are the limits to Ceony’s powers?

As a sequel, I was delighted with how the story evolved and how everything unfolded. We’re shown more magic and given more information as to how different powers work, and The Glass Magician focuses a lot on… glass. I loved reading about the magic of glass just as much as the magic of paper in the first book.

“Extraordinary like this?” she asked.
Raising her eyebrows, Ceony accepted the mirror and opened it. Only, instead of the reflection of her face, the dark eyes of a gorilla blinked back.

The issues I had with pacing in the first one were resolved in its sequel, and The Glass Magician moved along quickly and smoothly, never boring me at all. Charlie N Holmberg presented an outstanding second installment, and I look forward to reading the third and final book in this wonderful trilogy.

1976 Florence Ballard, one of the original Supremes, died of a heart attack at the age of 32. After being dismissed from the group, Ballard separated from her husband and went on welfare after losing an $8.7 million suit for back royalties against Motown Records

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This Day In History

1976 Florence Ballard, one of the original Supremes, died of a heart attack at the age of 32. After being dismissed from the group, Ballard separated from her husband and went on welfare after losing an $8.7 million suit for back royalties against Motown Records